Steve Morse
September 30 1983, Opera House, Boston, MA, USA
GUITARISTS HOLD THE HOT HAND
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, AL DIMEOLA AND PACO DELUCIA - IN CONCERT AT THE OPERA HOUSE, FRIDAY NIGHT
Ernie Santosuosso Globe Staff
The game of musical chairs was never demonstrated more skillfully than on Friday evening
when John McLaughlin, Al DiMeola and Paco DeLucia gave an overpowering performance of
acoustic guitar-playing at The Opera House. For nearly two and one-half hours, the three
musicians staged a dazzling display of ensemble and individual technique while giving a
stunning testimonial for the acoustic guitar. Their playing was so impressive it was
impossible to single out any guitarist for special recognition. Even the term "warmup act"
proved to be a patent misnomer as solo acoustic guitarist Steve Morse, on leave from the
Dixie Dregs, graphically illustrated. His brief, but impressive, early set earned him a
standing ovation and encore. Morse later joined the trio for a steaming windup to this stringed
wingding.
The first half of the main program consisted of trio performances on the opening and closing
selections with the players alternating in duo roles on the other songs. The flavor for the
evening was definitely Spanish, heavy on the new-departure flamenco style nurtured by
DeLucia, who emulated his partners' breakneck speed while fingering his guitar in the
classical manner. The bulk of the program was culled from the two trio recordings on
Columbia, "Friday Night in San Francisco" and "Passion, Fire and Grace.
The level of discipline without sacrificing improvisational quality and intra-empathy was admirably
maintained. On Chick Corea's "Spain," DeLucia's fiery solo yielded to DiMeola's upper-range
percussive fingerings while McLaughlin's guitar simulated the sound of a mandolin. Virtually all
solos in the concert were played at whirlwind speed. Some of the songs were relieved by brief
decelerated passages often employed as bridging devices for solos. DiMeola and DeLucia indulged
in can-you-top-this flurries as each catalyzed the other on "Mediterranean Sundance." McLaughlin,
currently resting his electric guitar, and DeLucia stoked white-hot intensity into their duo rendition
of "Frevo Rasgado." DiMeola picked a delicately lovely passage of single notes in the middle of an
otherwise scorching-paced "Scenario" in his tandem role with McLaughlin.
The audience responded with several standing ovations throughout the evening, especially during
the second half of the program which featured the trio and the returning Morse. "Sechia," "Guardian
Angel," "Orient Blue," "Aspan" from McLaughlin's Shakti period; "Aspan" and "Fantasia Suite" also
focused on crisp ensemble playing and sleight-of-hand interchanges.
Joining the others, Morse's solos on "Splendido Hotel" and "Tresi" snapped off of his strings with a
whip-snap effect. It was a program of music masterfully played that exceeded the speed limit. It
would have been even more satisfying had there been a merciful insertion of a ballad or two.
- Boston Globe, October 3, 1983
October 24 1983, Kiva Auditorium, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Northern Lights
Picture This
The Country Tune
The Riff Raff
Acoustic Jam for one acoustic guitar
Barock